


I'm Falling (Longing For Change)

by jackettslutt



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Art, Asshole!Rhett (at first), Day drinking, Groping, Homelessness, Link is a poet, Love Story, M/M, Mentions of past abuse, New York City, Possible smut, Prostitution, Rhett has problems, Run Away, Sexual Frustration, Short Story, Some Humor, Somewhat sad in the middle, Song fic, Twink, bartending, feminine!Link, im bad at tags, minor alcoholism, rhink, rich!Rhett, shallow - a star is born (inspired)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-04
Updated: 2019-06-04
Packaged: 2020-04-07 17:33:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19089799
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jackettslutt/pseuds/jackettslutt
Summary: "I felt like I was less than half of something; there was a void within me. I don't need anything more, now that I have you."--Rhett mistakes Link for a street walker; a rather unfortunate first encounter. But as time goes on, as they bond between glasses of alcohol and breath-fogged windows of Rhett's car, perhaps they find that it's not entirely a mistake. Perhaps something special begins to spark between the two that neither of them ever expected.{Inspired by a Shallow by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper (ily)}





	I'm Falling (Longing For Change)

**Author's Note:**

> "Tell me something, boy;  
> Aren't you tired tryin' to fill that void?  
> Or do you need more?  
> Ain't it hard keeping it so hardcore?  
> I'm falling  
> In all the good times I find myself  
> Longing for change  
> And in the bad times I fear myself  
> I'm off the deep end, watch as I dive in  
> I'll never meet the ground  
> Crash through the surface, where they can't hurt us  
> We're far from the shallow now."

This is fucking New York City, how was it possible that Link had been standing at the side of the very busy road for fifteen minutes and still hadn't seen a single taxi? 

He groaned in frustration and rubbed his temples for a moment before the sound of breaks snapped him back into focus, but then he gave the car pulling to the side of the road a funny look. It was a black SUV, and most certainly not a taxi. Isn't it illegal to have your windows tinted that dark? Link could hardly see a silhouette until the window rolled down, and then he leaned his head down a bit so he could see who it was. He didn't know anyone in this city, so he kept a safe distance. 

There was a ruggedly handsome man in the driver seat, slightly messy dirty blond hair kept at ease with some sort of pomade, and an untrimmed beard. It wasn't long enough to make him look like a full-blown lumberjack, but it was to the point here no skin could be seen underneath it.

He had his left wrist rested on the top of the steering wheel and his right elbow rested on the console between the seats as he leaned over to talk out of the window. Link felt the heat of his car rush out of the window against his face and neck. 

"Hey darlin, how much?" 

Link scoffed out loud and stepped back so he could look up at nothing in particular and sarcastically chuckle to himself. Unbelievable. This most certainly wasn't the first time he'd been asked this since he moved here. At first it was kind of flattering, but now it was just getting on his nerves. 

In his own opinion, he didn't even look like the average escort. He had black skinny jeans stretched from his hips down to his ankles, and a red and black lacy corset that ran from underneath the waistband of his jeans up to his chest. The breast parts of it were almost completely flat so he didn't have to worry about filling anything out. A black cardigan kept him moderately modest; just about as modest as one can feel when their chest and shoulders are open to the chilly city air. He had on plain black converse and his black rimmed glasses, his hair cut into a neat, jet black quiff atop his head. All he wore on his face aside from his glasses were mascara and lip balm. It wasn't that he minded being mistaken for a prostitute; gotta make your money somehow, right? 

Rather, it annoyed him that just because he was a man in a corset, people just openly assumed he'd let them have sex with him for money. Perhaps he just liked the way it absolutely snatched his waist and made him feel like he looked good. 

He knew feminine boys were spoken to like this every single day, and that bothered him the most. 

"I'm actually waiting for a taxi." 

"Name your price, you're a good lookin' one I wouldn't mind paying extra for." He wasn't sure why he caught it, but he noticed that the man had a slight southern accent rather than a New Yorker accent. Perhaps he wasn't originally from around here either, perhaps he was mistaken. 

"Can't you tell I'm not actually a woman?"

"No shit, Sherlock."

Link let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm not interested, mister. I really have somewhere to be, and you're in the spot a taxi would pull over into to pick me up. I'm not a prostitute. Could you, I don't know, go away?" 

"Oh hohoho, this ones got a bit of an attitude, yeah?" Rhett chuckled and sat back in his seat a bit, "where are you headed?" 

"None of your business."

"Sweetheart, I'm offering you a ride, free of charge. No dick stuff, I pinky swear." 

"How am I supposed to know you're not a serial killer or something? Why are you so persistent on giving me a ride?" Link crossed his arms over his chest and looked at the man with an intensely suspicious stare. 

"Because I'm out on the town for shits and giggles and it wouldn't be a hassle for me. Pardon me for trying to be a gentleman." 

"You just asked me if I'd let you pay me for sex less than two minutes ago. Gentlemen don't do that."

"Well, I shot my shot and I missed. No big deal." 

"Whatever. Thanks for your charity, but I'm good. Stranger danger."

"Well damn, alright," Rhett chuckled and changed gears back into drive, "I'll see you sometime soon again, maybe?"

"Probably not." Link was already looking behind the mans car for a taxi again.

"We'll see." And with that, the window was rolling back up and Rhett was aggressively squeezing himself back into traffic. Link rolled his eyes, stepping back when the man was out of sight, thanking the lord above him when he finally managed to wave down a taxi less than a minute later. 

________

The bar on 9th. That's where Link was heading. 

He needed a job, and he needed one now. He had train hopped and hitchhiked from North Carolina all the way to New York City. Granted, he had some unfortunate interactions with some of the men who pulled over for him and picked him up, but he luckily managed to pepper spray the absolute shit out of them before sprinting as far away from the car as he could. He wasn't stupid, he knew the risks of hitchhiking, but he also knew ways to avoid getting murdered, or worse. 

Train hopping was the scariest part of it. He had to climb up onto the top of the train car to hide himself and what little belongings he carried with him so he wouldn't get caught. Border patrol stressed him into the point of hyperventilating but he actually got through.

Why he chose this place? He had no particular answer. It just appealed to him. It was without a doubt going to be more enjoyable than the rough life he lived in North Carolina, anyway. 

He thought maybe he could make some money by entertaining the people at the bar alongside bartending. He knew he'd have a pretty good chance at getting the job; him being a very flirtatious feminine man and all. It was the entertainment part that was iffy. He didn't like to sing in front of people, but he was a writer, so the next best thing was spoken poems. Unfortunately, people aren't a big fan of spoken poems in this kind of place; especially in a bar. He decided to mainly hang on to the bartending part of it. All he longed for was some kind of change.

When he arrived outside of the bar, he handed over a crumpled up $5, his hand shaky when he took the $1 in change. The second he stuffed the bill in his wallet and returned it to his pocket, he regretted not just walking the two miles. He was extremely short on money at this point and could hardly afford toiletries. 

He thanked the man and hopped out of the car, sighing to himself when he got light headed from standing up too fast. One can only ignore their hunger pains for so long, right? 

He pulled both front sides of his cardigan so they overlapped on his chest, then he crossed his arms over one another to secure it. He knew he wasn't going to enjoy this job. 

When he walked in, he was met with a very thick scent of cigarettes and a mix between alcohol and bodily musk. It wasn't necessarily a bad odor, more of a potent smell of a crowd. The group of bikers surrounding the pool table and tables beside it were probably to blame, maybe even the large man in the gray sweater with his head down on the bar counter. It was just after three in the afternoon, why was he already black out drunk? Well, Link probably would be too if he could afford it. He didn't even blame the man. 

He quietly made his way deeper into the bar, trying to avoid all eye contact with the people around him in order to keep others from talking to him. He knew people were staring at him anyway. He just hoped no one - especially men searching for an escort - would approach him. 

He walked up to the bar and waited until the older woman across the counter noticed him and came closer to take his order, all so he didn't have to talk too loudly and attract attention. 

"Hi, um.. I'm here for a job interview." 

"You're Link?" 

"Yeah, that's me." He laughed softly and struggled to keep eye contact. 

She smiled back, then she nodded her head to the side to silently tell him to follow her in that direction. When he did, she exited through the small employee doorway and sat down at the customer side of the counter, Link taking initiative to sit by her.

She stuck out her hand, "I'm Mindy. I own this place." 

He took her hand and gently shook it, "Nice to meet you, Mindy." 

"So you're here for the bartending job, yeah?" 

"Yes, ma'am." 

"Part time?" 

He nodded, "just so I can get back into the working mindset, then I'll definitely go full time." 

"Why are you looking for a job in a place like this, hon?" 

He shrugged, "if I'm honest with you, it's because it was one of the only places that didn't require an address on the application. Plus, I think it'd be fun to try and connect with the costumers, you know?" 

She raised her eyebrow a bit, "you don't want to disclose your address? Might I ask why not?" 

His smile faltered a bit, "would my answer effect my chances at getting the job?" 

"It depends." She gave him a smile to tell him she was half-joking. 

He sighed. "Well, I don't even really know how to word it. The simplest way is to just tell you I technically don't have an address." 

"Technically, huh?" 

"Yeah." He toyed with the sleeve of his cardigan. She looked over his small dainty looking frame and somewhat understood. 

"Are you a fast learner?" 

"If I'm enjoying myself, most certainly."

"What kind of things do you enjoy?"

"I love making things and socializing. By 'things' I mean anything from food to mixed drinks to money to art. Making anything, really." 

"Well then," she stood up and wiped her hands on the front of her apron, "you're hired." 

"What? Really?"

"Really." Link could tell by her voice that she was a heavy smoker. "I was young and in need of help once, too, and I want to be the kind of person I needed at the time. Would you like to start your training two days from today? I want to be your trainer and I won't be working tomorrow." 

Link sat up straighter with a bright smile, his body turning towards the bar to follow her when she went behind the counter again. "Yeah, yeah that's perfect! Thank you so much!" 

She took the towel from her shoulder and began wiping down the wet-looking surface of the counter, "I have a question for you."

"Yeah?"

"Is that the only kind of outfit you own?" 

He looked down at his torso then at her again with a slightly concerned expression, "is it not acceptable for work here?" 

"Well, I wouldn't say that necessarily, no," she skimmed his upper body with her eyes, "it's perfectly acceptable for a bartender. It suits you very well, actually. But that is where the issue lies. People don't seem to have respect for bartenders as it is, let alone young and pretty ones like you that they'll grope and catcall whenever they please." 

Link chuckled, "I keep getting questions about prostitution. I do mind it but I don't really show it. I only own feminine things, yeah. I have very limited outfit supplies if you get what I mean." 

"I do. But at the same time, wearing things like that will get you very generous tips and maybe even more customers altogether. No risk, no reward." 

"Good point." He laughed softly and adjusted his glasses with his index finger knuckle, "I can tell you're busy, I don't mean to hold you back from work. I just got here in a cab so I'm probably gonna stick around to get my moneys worth. Plus, I should probably get used to the bar scene." He gave her a very tired smile and sighed, rubbing his right temple with his fingers. The smells in this dimly lit bar were nauseating.

"You want something, hon? Don't take this the wrong way but you look like you could use a drink."

"I um.. can't really afford that right now. But thanks for the offer." He said with a genuine tone. No one has ever been this kind to Link, and he didn't understand why the owner of a bar was treating him so nicely. He wasn't complaining, though.

"On the house." She smiled almost sympathetically. 

"Oh, thank you, Mindy." He seemed increasingly happy at the offer, "I'll take a Long Island iced tea."

"Do you like burgers and fries?"

"That sounds amazing, too." 

"Coming right up." She turned back toward the bottles of alcohol to get the drink started. 

"No way, you're a day drinker, too?" A sarcastic voice startled Link out of his tired daze, a familiar one at that, and he turned around to be met with messy dirty blond hair and a beard. Only this time, the stranger had a beer in his hand and a much goofier smile on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> There may be explicit smut, there may not be. I haven't decided yet, mostly decided on implied/referenced stuff but knowing me it'll go full-blow. Maybe not.
> 
> (There probably will be)
> 
> This fic is gonna be short and sweet! I'm excited to write it. I absolutely love this song. I didn't like the movie all that much bc of how it played out but the actors and overall quality was great. 
> 
> Anyway, the main goal of this fic is to capture just how powerful the meaning of the lyrics I posted above are. It's gonna be a bit rough and ragged at the beginning (like all of my stories) because I'm bad at intros and stuff but as I get more familiar with this storyline it'll smooth out a bit. I'm not gonna spoil anything but I hope it turns out how I'm attempting to write it!
> 
> ~Trash


End file.
